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The shots rang out in the tight space as Leon hit every single wooden pirate. "And that's the game!"
The wooden board above clacked, showing an impressive 'S' score. "Heh heh, we were right about you, stranger."
"Shit," Leon mumbled. Even though the score was good, he had been hoping to hit every skull- instead he missed two.
"You did well friend," Luis said. He had been leaning against the barrel, eyeing Leon’s impressive attempts. “But you can always try again.”
Leon slowly turned to look at him. “I will, if you shut up.” He then hit the bell.
Luis put up his hands in mock defense. “Shutting up then.”
“3…2…1…Begin!”
There was plenty to look at after all: the way Leon’s muscles tensed when firing, the way his stance shifted depending on the weapon, the way he rapidly reloaded and switched guns when the challenge called for it…it was a treat to watch.
Another 'S', this time all skulls. Leon smirked and nodded. “Now the other one,” he said, and hit the bell.
However, the targets didn’t glide into place. Instead, The Merchant sounded over the speakers. “A moment stranger.” They heard the sound of heavy footsteps coming from behind the walls. “Gotta set up those targets again.”
Absentmindedly, Luis pulled out a cigarette, only to be met with The Merchant’s booming voice through the speake r. “No smoking at practice!” As if to punctuate the reprimand, Leon glared at him.
“Pain in my ass,” Luis grumbled, walking up the stairs to the lounge. Ashley was still napping on the ornate sofa in the corner, all curled up. Poor thing was exhausted. They all were.
Unfortunately they couldn’t leave yet; the cave they had wanted to make their escape through was partially submerged because of the tide. They had another few hours to kill before they could go through it. Theoretically, they could swim, but hypothermia and drowning were real dangers, not to mention pneumonia. It wasn’t worth it, especially since they had a safe haven like this.
Fuck, Ashley looked cold. She had lost her jacket and scarf at some point, leaving her with bare arms and a thin sweater top that seemed to do little to keep her warm. Luis looked around, and being unable to find anything to cover her with, unzipped his leather jacket and draped it over her. It was dirty and had some blood on it, but something told him Ashley wouldn’t mind.
He then walked away towards the huge antique globe to light up.
Instantly, the Merchant’s voice boomed again.
“No smoking in the lounge!”
“Shit Luis! Go outside!” Leon yelled.
“In the pouring rain?!” Luis yelled back.
“Better than smoking here mate,” The Merchant said, having suddenly appeared behind him. “Just don’t stand close to the elevator, yeah?”
Startled, Luis jumped back. “How the fuck did you get here so fast? Weren’t you just in the back?”
“That’s for me to know, and you to never find out,” The Merchant said, his eyes narrowing at Luis with judgemental intensity. He then held out a thick, warm blanket. “A gift for the lady.”
“Oh, thank you,” Luis said, deflating at the unexpected kind gesture. He immediately went over to Ashley, took his jacket off her and draped the nice, clean blanket over her instead.
The Merchant was already gone by then.
With a resigned sigh, Luis walked back to Leon, who was just finishing another challenge.
Naturally, another 'S'.
“I don’t think that guy is human,” Luis whispered.
Finally, Leon cracked a smile. “Yeah, you’re probably right. But he’s giving us shelter…” He nodded towards the shooting gallery. “....and entertainment for a good price.”
“I wouldn’t call it good, Leon.” Luis kept his voice down. “Do you know how much that crown you sold him was worth?” He had been around long enough and dug into the Los Illuminados transaction records often enough to know that the crown was worth a few million euros. And that was just one item- the castle was full of hidden treasures worth five times that.
“No price high enough for being alive,” Leon said. Fuck, he was right. The weapons and ammunition The Merchant had were probably worth millions, but in their situation, they were priceless. Luis didn’t know that much about firearms, but he knew what a high-quality, modified black market piece looked like. The bolt thrower alone made him take a step back- he didn’t even know something like that still existed.
"Besides, how would I even sell all this shit if I got it out?" Leon asked. Another good point. The American was a government agent, and tabs were certainly kept on him.
Luis shrugged. "Well either way, I would take something."
Leon didn't grace him with a reply, so Luis went back to leaning on the barrel and watching Leon attempt yet another challenge.
It was hard to not comment or say anything. The man before him was attractive and competent, and his predisposition to carry out seemingly justified acts of violence was, unfortunately, titillating.
“Say Leon,” Luis began. He assumed it was alright to talk-Leon had finished the challenge, but he hadn’t hit the bell again; instead, he was massaging his wrists.
“What?”
“You ever expected life to turn out this way? Because I wanted to be a scientist, well-” He pointed to himself. “I wanted to be a knight first, but what little boy doesn’t want to be?”
Leon scoffed. “Yeah. I mean I always wanted to be a cop, ever since I was a kid. Closest thing to a modern knight I guess.”
Luis hemmed and hawed, and Leon shrugged and waved his hand. “Yeah I know. Not a cop anyway now.”
“Well you’re sort of a cop? Right? Although-”
“I actually was one, but only for a day.”
“Wow, you must have been really bad to get fired like that.”
The pause was heavy. “In Raccoon City. During the first day of the outbreak.”
Luis took a step back. He didn’t want to believe it at first, but he realized it made plenty of sense. It certainly explained Leon’s intense hatred for Umbrella. Shit.
The shocked panic must have been palpable in Luis’ eyes, because Leon scoffed. “Don’t worry, I don’t blame you. You’re not a bad guy.”
Luis laughed weakly. “And how do you know that?” He sure as hell didn’t think so.
“Because I found out what happened to your grandfather.” Luis gave him a puzzled look, but before he could ask ‘how’, Leon elaborated. “I was in the village chief’s house.”
“And what of it?” Luis asked. He began to play with his lighter, the clicking sound echoing loudly throughout the shooting gallery, while the soft carnival music playing through the speakers faded away. “It’s not a justification.”
“But it’s an explanation.” Leon’s expression was neutral, but his eyes betrayed deep sympathy. “You grew up with not only him, but also all the villagers. I saw the pictures. They looked like decent people.”
Now it was Luis’ turn to scoff. “Decent enough, yeah.” Sure, they weren’t murderous, ravaging psychos back then, but they still were a part of an isolated religious cult that impacted him severely, mostly negatively. But that wasn’t something he was about to get into.
To his surprise, Leon continued. “I also lost family, and for what it’s worth, it changes you. You don’t make the best decisions.”
Ah, there it was. Luis figured Leon had some kind of baggage, he was just surprised to see it matched his. “Sorry to hear that. Racoon City I assume?”
“Ha, no. Orphaned at 10.”
Well fuck. “Okay, I have to admit- that’s a bit sadder,” Luis said. “I am sorry though. Life hasn’t been easy for us I see.”
“Yeah, I guess not.” There was a weary smile on Leon’s face. He hit the bell and the targets glided into view.
Luis watched in silence for another few challenges, his will to talk having somewhat dissipated. He was glad Leon shared something with him. It made it easier to connect, and perhaps more importantly, it made him not feel alone.
But he was still bored. After about another hour, he was pacing between the lounge and the shooting gallery, antsy because he could not fucking light up. Sure, he could step out- chances are the rain subsided- but like hell was he going to risk his life for a cigarette. What if someone noticed the flame and came running?
If Saddler’s henchmen didn’t kill him, The Merchant certainly would.
So it was back to annoying Leon, who had finished another break and was now gunning for a new set of challenges. The tokens were piling up in the corner, and Luis knew he’d have to soon go and pull some more toys, which were, coincidentally, also piling up on the lounge table.
But for now, he thought he’d comment on the questionable pointing system established for the challenges.
"Take the dogs you're shooting, friend, they have only been trained to attack. They're innocent. And what about the pirates? Well many pirates were sailors that were forced to become pirates by other pirates. But I suppose you shooting them is fitting as historically, most were executed for their alleged crimes anyway. I think you should be shooting the sailors, who also participated in murder, looting, torture and-"
“Shit!” Leon swore. He had gotten an 'A'. He whipped his head around, his blond bangs falling over his eyes in a neat mess. “Luis.” He sighed and exhaled so heavily that Luis was sure he heard Leon’s lungs travel up his chest. “I know you’re bored, but could you stop talking? I’m trying to get discounts.”
“Well if you let me shoot-”
“The Merchant forbade you, and you also haven’t handled any gun other than the one you’re holding.”
Luis looked down at his late grandfather’s Red 9. “Fair point.”
“Go talk to Ashley.”
“Still sleeping. But I can wake-”
“No!”
Luis threw his hands up.
“Is there anything that shuts you up?” Leon asked.
Ah, excellent that he asked. Luis twirled his gun and smirked. “Few things get me quiet. One.” He put up his finger. “My work. Can concentrate in my lab without saying a thing for hours. Two.” He put up his second finger. “When I am kissing a lover.” He winked. Yes, this was how he flirted. Leon would probably roll his eyes at him and order him out.
He didn't.
“Well, there’s no lab here….” Leon trailed off. He looked around for a moment, biting his lip, before snapping his fingers. “If I get an S on this next challenge, you have to sit in the lounge for the next hour.” Leon pointed at him. “And you can’t wake Ashley, and you have to be quiet.”
“Okay, fair. And if you fail?” Luis raised his eyebrow.
“I have to kiss you, and you can sit here for as long as you want, so long as you keep the distractions to a minimum.” Leon delivered the line in such a deadpan way that Luis burst out laughing, sure the American was joking.
It was only when he noticed Leon was staring at him seriously that his laughter turned into an awkward chuckle.
“Are you for real, American?” Luis asked incredulously. Was Leon playing games with him? He had to be. Leon could bullseye those challenges without breaking a sweat. No, there would never be any kissing involved.
Leon gave him a coy smile. “Yeah, I am.” There was a tinge of amusement in his eyes. Oh fuck, was he flirting back?
Well Luis wasn’t one to pass up an opportunity. “Have at it then.” He jutted his chin out and swung his hand forward towards the shooting gallery.
Leon grinned at him and hit the bell. Nothing happened. He squinted his eyes ta it, annoyed, and then hit it again. And again. And again.
“Quit it! I need to set it up again!” The Merchant materialized behind them, this time holding what looked like a mug of steaming hot tea. “I was on my break.” He nodded towards the lounge. “Go have a drink, on the house- I will set up the targets again.”
Leon obediently walked towards the lounge, while Luis risked asking why he couldn’t play, only to be met with a curt “It’s for the stranger, not you” from The Merchant, who then promptly disappeared into a cleverly concealed side door, mug still in hand and all.
“What do you think he is?” Luis asked, walking into the lounge but still looking behind at the shooting gallery, hoping to catch a glimpse of The Merchant.
“A nice man?” Ashley suggested. She was awake and sitting up on the couch, blanket draped over her and eagerly sipping hot tea. Leon was sitting next to her, also under the thick blanket, and also drinking tea with an expression far too calm for a man who just suggested a kiss.
Luis sat opposite of them in a comfy chair, and also eagerly began to sip on his tea. Their black mugs were decorated with cartoon versions of the merchant with one foot on a barrel and his right hand triumphantly holding up a gun.
“I think he’s a wizard,” Leon said. There was no trace of mockery or sarcasm in his voice.
“Right?” Ashley laughed. “I mean, we’ve seen enough weird things, this doesn’t seem that impossible.”
Leon nodded, and then sighed. “I miss my jacket. Did any of you notice it anywhere?”
Luis shook his head, and Ashley asked what it looked like, only to also confirm she hadn’t seen it.
Luis thought it was funny how he was the only one out of the three of them to not lose his jacket. Well, if he didn’t end up having to go to prison or into hiding, he could get Leon another one as a gift. Hopefully after they became lovers.
“Luis, stop looking at me like that,” Leon suddenly said.
Fuck, he hadn’t even realized he was ogling Leon there a little bit. “Like what?” Time to feign being obtuse.
In response, Leon just raised his eyebrows at him. Ashley either was oblivious to the situation, or was politely ignoring them- most likely the latter. Either way, she was playing with a trick box .
The Merchant soon announced that the game was ready- by then Ashley was asleep again, her head on Leon’s lap.
“Is this normal Luis?” Leon carefully slid out from under her, making sure to prop her head up with a pillow and cover her with the blanket.
“As in the sleeping?”
Leon nodded.
Luis bobbed his head from side to side. “In a way it makes sense. Combined with how long she was in captivity, and how she needed three suppressants, in contrast to your two, I think it’s reasonable that she’s more exhausted. She also took the removal harder.” Luis shuddered. She hadn’t been breathing for a good half a minute after the removal was done, and during those 30 long seconds he had been sure he killed her. He nearly cried when she finally gasped for air.
“Yeah,” Leon said. “Anyway, we have a bet to complete.”
“I mean, is there any point? We will be leaving in an hour.” Luis was surprised at the words that had come out of his own mouth.
Leon laughed. “Are you chickening out?”
He was, but he wasn’t about to admit that. “No, of course not,” he said with mock confidence.
He hoped Leon didn’t notice his eye twitch. It was one thing to endlessly flirt, but it was an entirely different thing to have hope that something could actually happen here, now. For fucks sake, he was sure that at best, he would meet Leon again somewhere down the line in months or even years and only then they would hit it off. And even that was a strong maybe.
Truth be told, he was more talk than anything. He could blab and throw flirty one-liners faster than a squirrel on steroids, but when it came to actual physical intimacy, he wasn’t the smoothest. He would fumble about, tripping over his own feet when, say, he would be trying to get his clothes off. And everything would get worse when someone he was crushing hard on would genuinely return his affections.
At least kissing wasn't too big of a deal. Still, he didn’t want to appear uncool in front of Leon, mumbling and turning red during the kiss. Goddammit he curated for himself a don juan reputation, and he wanted it to stick!
Reload time. So far, so good. Leon looked focused, no missed targets, perfect.
And then Leon turned and winked at him.
Luis gulped, and pretended to be unaffected as Leon mowed down every target in sight. Just then, the three last targets glided into view. Not even particularly hard ones- one pirate and two dogs.
Leon shot to the side, missing the targets by such a wide margin that the bullets flew into the wooden walls of the shooting gallery.
He then had the gall, the audacity , to spin the gun before setting it down on the balustrade.
“Seem like I missed the last few over there,” Leon said, a wide smile on his face.
Luis was speechless. “That you did, my friend,” he mumbled out. His brain was still trying to process that Leon purposefully missed.
“So?” Leon asked. He was standing with his arms clasped in front of him, casually leaning against the balustrade with an almost too relaxed expression.
“Fine, let’s d-do this,” Luis said. Fuck he did not sound confident.
“Luis,” Leon began. He sauntered over, stopping inches away from him. “Last chance to back out. I won’t judge.”
Ah, so his hesitancy was palpable. Luis sighed. He couldn’t play it cool anymore. “Leon, don’t take this the wrong way, but to tell you the truth, I didn’t think I had a single chance with you.”
Leon furrowed his eyebrows. “Why?” He then slightly shook his head, which made his blond bangs dance around the sides of his face in an endearing manner. “You’ve been flirting with me from the moment you met me.”
“Well for one,” Luis laughed. “I do that with…” he raised his eyebrows. “...everybody. And also, I’m a smoker.” He inched closer, his lips very close to Leon’s. “I thought that you didn’t like smoking, friend.”
“I don’t like it, but I’m used to it.” Leon wasn’t moving away. “And I’ve smoked before.”
Luis inched even closer, his lips now a hair’s breadth away from Leon’s. “You have, huh?”
“Yeah.”
Leon closed the gap, planting a firm kiss on Luis’ lips before moving away. That had clearly been a kiss to honor the bet; a tentative action, one that tested if perhaps something more could be permitted.
It could be. It was obvious when they looked at each other.
Luis dove in, this time properly kissing Leon.
And oh it felt wonderful.
Luis wrapped his arms around Leon’s waist, leaning in without hesitation into his body; Leon reciprocated by placing his gloved hand on the back of Luis’s neck, while the other wandered down to his lower back.
They were pressed up against each other, kissing slowly but passionately. Luis could tell Leon hadn’t had an opportunity to do this in a long while. To be fair-neither had he. The longer the kiss went on, the more joy and relief Luis felt. He had been sure Leon held him in disdain, or at the very best, tolerated him. Now he was 80% sure this was not the case, not with the way Leon’s tongue was inside his mouth.
“No snogging at target practice!” The Merchant yelled through the speakers, startling them apart. “What next, you gonna have a shag on the floor?”
Leon laughed awkwardly, but Luis scoffed in defiance. “So what can you do here, huh?” he loudly asked.
“I know I said to relax, but that is a bit too much eh? The target practice is for shooting, and the lounge is for resting! Got it?” And that was the end of the discussion.
“Guess we will have to continue this some other time,” Leon said, turning his attention back to the gun. He picked it up, but then set it down- he didn’t feel like continuing.
“There will be another time?” Luis asked. He was fighting the grin that was about to spread across his face.
“Well yeah, if you, I mean, uh-” Leon closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “Sorry, it’s been a while. But, what I’m saying, if you want-”
“Of course I do.” Luis softly said. He stepped forward, but Leon raised his hands and nodded towards the shooting gallery. Right, they didn’t want to get kicked out.
“He’s surprisingly strict, no?” Luis whispered.
“Rules make for a happy life, Mr. Serra.”
“Fuck!” Luis exclaimed, hitting his elbow against the balustrade. The Merchant had once again popped up out of nowhere. Luis gave him a look of annoyance as he massaged his bruised arm.
Leon seemed unbothered. “Sorry, and thanks. I think I’m done with target practice.”
The Merchant nodded in acknowledgement. “You are impressive, Stranger.” He then waved towards the exit. “You had all best be going- the tide’s down- but I look forward to seeing you again.” There was a weight to his words, and Luis just knew that Leon would run into him sooner rather than later.
Leon snorted. “Are you going to stalk me?”
“No. But I think you will find your way to me.” A smile could be heard in The Merchant’s voice.
“And will you stalk me?” Luis asked playfully.
The Merchant didn’t even spare him a glance. “No.”
Somehow they made it. The caves beneath the island were dark, cold, and slippery, but they all trekked through them without suffering greater harm. From there, they managed to make their way to a small hidden dock, where there was a motorboat that could take them to the mainland.
The engine buzzed loudly as Leon steered the motorboat to safety. They had heard and seen the explosions in the distance- hopefully Ada had taken care of Saddler, or at the very least, hurt him to the point of immobility. At least I have the amber , Luis thought. If he played his cards right he'd be able to bargain his way into a position as a lead scientist studying the damn thing. Hell, he'd go to the States if he had to. A cure or a countermeasure at least, had to be devised.
Ashley snuggled into him. Despite being wrapped up in the blanket The Merchant had given her, she was shivering. Luis pressed the back of his hand to her forehead, confirming his suspicion that she was running a fever. That was actually good, as it meant that the parasite was definitely gone.
"You okay there Ashley?" He loudly asked, smoothing his hand over the back of head. The motorboat's old engine was deafening.
"I'm cold and aching all over," she complained, not opening her eyes. "And the motorboat is making me nauseous."
"We're almost there," he reassured. "Leon!" He called out.
Leon turned around and nodded that he was listening.
"Will your people have medical staff waiting for us?"
"Yeah! Is Ashley okay?"
Luis could barely make out what he had said. "She's just run down! Needs some vitamins and fluids! Probably a decent painkiller too! And you?"
Leon shook his head with a smile and waved him off in turn. That bad huh?
Soon, they were greeted by a swat team and a small wave of agents in cars, vans, and a parked helicopter. There were even military scattered about.
Luis sucked in a heavy sigh and shuddered. Fuck.
Leon parked the motorboat with flair, deftly vaulting to the right and just barely bumping the side of the boat into a small wooden dock. Agents rushed towards them, and Luis helped Ashley to her feet, intending to pass her onto Leon who was already standing on the dock. However, before he could do so, Ashley pulled him in for a tight hug which he graciously accepted.
"Thank you Luis," she said, her voice heavy with emotion. "Promise I'll see you again?"
He couldn't promise that. "Of course, I promise." But he could lie.
She smiled at him and gave him a quick kiss on his cheek, and he returned in kind, even sneaking a kiss to the back of her hand which greatly amused her.
Leon was met with more of the same warmth; Ashley hugged him for a long while, no doubt thanking him for his help. If there was anything more, Luis didn’t hear it, but he could tell that whatever was said it had made Leon emotional.
“You will probably see her again,” Luis reassured.
“I hope so,” Leon said. “But for now she needs to recover. And we need to be debriefed.”
“Yeah, of course.” Luis replied automatically. In reality, he was entertaining a certain thought: what if he tried to make a run for it? The motorboat he was standing in still had plenty of fuel, and he knew he could dock further up the coast. He had no guarantee that the American government would actually entertain the thought of letting him continue research on las plagas . What if they straight up grabbed him and threw him into a cell, after of course confiscating the amber sample he had on him? He’d be fucked, and he knew that the Spanish government would not give a shit about him.
“No.”
Luis looked up. Leon had stretched his arm out, offering to help him up onto the dock. “Don’t do it. They’ll make me go after you, and you know that I’ll catch you.” The determination in Leon’s eyes was frightening.
“Guess I don’t have much choice, ey?” Luis tried to play off his nervousness as he graciously accepted Leon’s help and jumped onto dry land.
“Don’t worry, I’m not going to let them do anything to you,” Leon said. “I know you have the sample.”
Luis whipped his head around. “Fuck, how-”
“Felt something in the side of your jacket when we kissed. And I knew it was not your gun. Simple process of elimination.”
Luis tsked. “Fuck you’re good.” He bumped his elbow into Leon’s arm. “Don’t be too smug about it.”
“I’m not being smug,” Leon said with a laugh. He then sighed. “It’ll be fine Luis.”
“If you say so.” He still wasn’t convinced. The helicopter was taking off with Ashley inside- soon the agents would redirect their attention towards them.
Leon put his hand on Luis’ shoulder. “I’ll introduce you to someone.” He then waved to a neatly dressed woman, who waved back, a wide smile on her face. She exchanged a few words with a coworker, and then ran up to them.
“Dr Luis, hello,” she said in a friendly manner. She extended her hand, and Luis shook it, attempting to hide the mild surprise on his face at being greeted so warmly.
“Agent Ingrid Hunnigan. Agent Kennedy here told us what you did. I think I can speak for the president when I say thank you, and that we are in debt to you.”
Luis gave Leon a slightly confused look before turning back to the agent. “You're welcome, I mean, I did what anyone would have done.”
She shook her head in response. “I’ve met a handful of Umbrella scientists and researched even more- few of them had the morals you did. Besides, Agent Kennedy has informed us your Umbrella work was largely focused on running interference within the company.”
Okay, now that was a straight up lie. He had simply left, only taking copies of data with him that he shouldn’t have. No interference had been run. On paper, he had been a model employee who had cooperated every step of the way.
He side-eyed Leon, who solemnly nodded. He was being protected.
Agent Hunnigan continued. “We’d love to debrief you, and discuss a possible liaison, of course after you undergo a medical check up and get some rest.”
That sounded perfect, and he said as much. “Thank you,” he whispered to Leon as agent Hunnigan walked away. “I still don’t think I deserve this, but thank you.”
“You do.”
Luis turned to look at him, and he could see the earnestness painted on Leon’s face, clear as day.
“Things aren’t black and white, Luis,” Leon continued. “And you know it’s nice to have someone who…..” He trailed off.
Luis knew what he wanted to say. “Same here,” he acknowledged. “Partners, then?”
Leon laughed merrily- a comforting sound, and one Luis hoped to hear more of in the future. “Partners.”